Good Medicine - 1980 Triumph TR8

Curing the blahs with a nearly original 1980 Triumph TR8

Feature Article from Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car

The answer, however obvious it may seem, to the question, "What were they thinking?" is perfectly logical. The last of the historic Triumph TR series was conceived in the crucible of the best market prognostication that the British sporting-motor industry could muster. Some of those minds' assumptions were flawed, to be sure, but in light of what was gyrating the world automotive industry during those years, a Triumph TR7 glows with bright rationality. The notion of a TR8's feathery V-8 capabilities makes it all but ravishing.
In the universe of performance cars, not everyone saw it that way, or still does. The Bullet, to borrow the factory codespeak used during its gestation, endured commonality with any number of other end-of-genre cars in that regard. Even in the context of the amply competent TR8, with General Motors-birthed V-8 power, these TRs are affordable British sports cars created when it was clear that affordable British sports cars were on their way to becoming extinct. All the markers pointed thusly. As sales told it, British roadsters were coming to be supplanted in the all-important North American market by sports sedans, largely from Germany. When Triumph and MG found themselves on the wane, too, Jaguar XJ sedans were finding favor, along with the sprawling XJS. People were buying the increasingly high-calorie Datsun Z-car, which, like the Mercedes-Benz SL series, was tacking the two-seat package toward ever-higher luxury.
None were sports cars, strictly speaking. That was the point. Even in Britain, the market for little British roadsters was in a state of attrition. There's a reason, which greatly influenced the design and shape of the TR7 and TR8 and which, more than any other factor, accounts for their non-traditional shape. When British Leyland first began to visualize these cars, the U.S. government was tightening the ligature of crashworthiness regulation to the point where the legality of open-topped cars came into serious question. Among domestic U.S. automakers, that expectation led to phenomena such as the Colonnade roofline and the "last" Cadillac convertibles, in the 1976 Eldorado.
In Great Britain, erstwhile foes Triumph and MG were now squeezed under British Leyland's shredded lean-to, and the managing directors were trying to guess which way to hop. The first leap was across the ocean to find those reliable sellers of British roadsters. By 1970, British Leyland president Donald Stokes had assigned the Bullet project to Spen King (see Pioneers in HS&EC #48), the technical brain behind Rover's resurgence, then head of Triumph. King headed for America along with Mike Carver, British Leyland's product chief, to commiserate with dealers there. Almost unanimously, the U.S. dealer body told the scouting team to keep things as simple and cheap as possible. Quality problems, and the associated repair costs, had long been slicing at the reputation of British cars in general. That dictated that the Bullet, as proposed internally, would regress to have a live-axle rear, a break with recent TR practice, and initially use the Austin Marina's four-speed gearbox. For the same reason, MacPherson front struts were used for the first time on a TR. The Bullet's engines, however, were British sourced to maintain this most obvious spiritual continuity, the Dolomite inline-four and, right from the start, the Rover's aluminum V-8.
Despite its clear English lineage, however, the Bullet remains unique as a British sports car designed most directly for American buyers. The curved-wedge look, hammered home by the rounded swage line, was produced in-house by the Austin-Morris styling team, led by Harris Mann, and folded around the U.S.-spec ram bumpers. Unlike previous Triumphs--by this time, British Leyland had determined that the new sports car would not be an MG--the Bullet would not be built in Coventry, but instead at a new plant in Speke, near Liverpool. That's where the Dolomite-powered Bullet, renamed the TR7, was built and launched in the United States in May 1976, to immediate complaints of poor execution and bizarre appearance that teleported Anglophiles to another dimension. Unless, however, they opted for the TR6, which remained on sale in 1976. The problem was a bitter strike at Speke, which persuaded British Leyland to close the relatively new plant and relocate production to the Canley plant in Coventry, a process that also included more than 200 running build changes.
Amid all this, the first pilot run of TR8s came on in 1977, all of them fixed-head coupes, though a relaxation of the anticipated U.S. rules had spawned a Bullet roadster. Meanwhile, production was shifted again, this time to Solihull, the culmination in a series of moves that resulted in broadly bettered quality for the TR7 and TR8, the latter introduced in April 1979 for the U.S. market, initially as fixed-head coupes only, followed in July 1979 by the first TR8 roadsters. Not to get too far ahead of the story, but when this 1980 TR8 was produced, the Bullet was turning out to be...well, "dud" is a little too obvious as a simile. Sticking with the facts, the U.S. market absorbed 141 TR8s in 1979, 2,088 in 1980--by then, all were roadsters--and another 405 before British Leyland dropped both Bullets at the end of 1981. Some 115,000 in all, including TR7s, were built. At that point, Triumph ceased to exist. Almost all of the TR8s built ended up in the United States; the number of home-market examples remains in dispute, but the number is likely around 80, so the TR8 is an American car in everything but build location. It's debatable whether the Lynx, a liftback 2+2 prototype that died when British Leyland abandoned Speke, might have extended its lifespan.
For those willing to look beyond its acquired-taste contours, nevertheless, the TR8 is an intriguing car with unexpectedly strong collecting credentials. Tellingly, British Leyland passed on the 3.0-liter Triumph SOHC V-8, first installed in the new Stag of 1970. From a reliability standpoint, it was an End of Days calamity: stretch-prone timing chains, cylinder heads that warped almost to the point of fluttering, water pump drives that sheared. Instead, King commanded that the TR8 use the all-aluminum, 215-cu.in. OHV V-8 that Rover had obtained from Buick, a groundbreaking American-designed engine that had powered on the order of a dozen British vehicles, including, ironically, the MGB GT V-8. Compared to the Stag V-8, the Rover engine was as reliable as sunrise, though it's interesting to note that 2,634 export-spec TR8s match U.S.-market Stag sales nearly unit for unit. By the time the TR8 reached production, a five-speed British Leyland transmission, borrowed from the Rover 3500 sedan, was standard.
Depending on year of manufacture and intended point of sale, four versions of the Rover V-8 went into the TR8, although by far the most common was the 49-state version of 1980 installed in our feature car, fitted with twin Zenith-Stromberg 175 CD FVX carburetors, with their distinctive bell-shaped suction chambers. TR8s built in 1980 and destined for sale in California instead received the ubiquitous Bosch L-Jetronic fuel-injection system beneath their manly bulged hoods, a tight fit, which was extended to 50-state use in the TR8's final year.
Initially, this TR8 wasn't intended for sale. Its VIN shows that it was the 20th such car built at Solihull for the 1980 model year. Brought to America, it ended up in British Leyland's press fleet, accumulating some 4,000 miles laid on by automotive writers. This very car ended up on the covers of both Car and Driver and AutoWeek. It was later sold through Wallace Imports, a British Leyland retailer in Phoenix, before being passed to owners in New England and outside Philadelphia. Before he moved his pharmacist's practice to just outside Charlotte, North Carolina, the present owner, Jack McGahey, saw it listed in the Delaware Valley Triumph Club's newsletter. He grabbed it, a 50,000-mile original, and headed south. The TR8 is still wearing its factory Triton Green finish. Being a press car, it's also got the sole TR8 option, air conditioning.
"This is the last, best sports car Triumph made," he told us. "It's in excellent shape. The Arizona owner had it for 18 years and took exceptional care of it. You either love the way these cars look or you don't like it at all, which tends to hold the TR8's value back. It's doesn't look that old even now, but it also doesn't have the classic appearance of the other TRs, which consistently have a higher value than these do."
From memory, McGahey was able to recite the results of a period C/D new-car comparison that matched up a Corvette against a 280Z, a Pontiac Trans-Am and another oft-discredited sports car of the time, a Porsche 924. Later, he got a Trans Am himself, with T-tops, a definitive Seventies icon if any ever existed, to be sure. The TR8 wins that showdown. "It's vastly more agile than the Trans Am, and still comfortable on a long trip, far more so than my other Triumphs, including the TR6."
We can conclude, then, that while the TR8 has some thematic similarities to the Sunbeam Tiger, it can demonstrably claim measurably better execution. The TR8 has an enthusiast following much more numerous, and rabid, than its build totals would indicate initially, and for several logical reasons, the first being that it's the last true, British-created Triumph. As McGahey tells it, the Rover engine does the heavy lifting to carry both the car itself and its cheering section. They're far more ubiquitous on the home sod, even if the TR8 isn't, having themed a galaxy of British speed parts. Over here, on the other hand, lots of TR8s have largely stock powertrains. McGahey's, fitted by a previous owner with a Mallory distributor and Delco alternator, has been entirely free of problems--yes, including the electrical system, with no excessive oil consumption. While his car hasn't been affected, he did note that one potentially scary hiccup is actually easy to solve: A faulty oil-pressure sensor, picking up a faux pressure drop, will actually interrupt electrical power to the front-mounted fuel pump. An aftermarket wiring harness made by British Wiring of Bally, Pennsylvania, is the fix.
"The electrics on this car are no better or worse than any other car produced during the same era," he declared. "Original pieces for these cars are easy to get, including the engine, from when some hot rodder has upgraded his Rover V-8 to a four-barrel or something. Most of the pieces are interchangeable with a TR7, even the plastic interior pieces, which are plentiful. Remember, there were more TR7s sold than any other car in the whole TR series."
Time's passage has vindicated the TR8. It's more collectible today than the imports that were outselling it by outsized factors when all these cars were new. McGahey can explain why. It's all about fidelity to what a sports car was supposed to be from day one.
"I autocross both this car and another TR8 that I own. They feel great, with a ton of V-8 torque and great responsiveness. The car has excellent balance because of the aluminum engine. In a TR8, second gear is the most fun place to be, so you can take advantage of the power curve.
"This car drove the British Reliability Run from North Carolina to Ohio a couple of years ago, on mostly winding roads, and the whole trip was a blast. It was complete comfort, about 1,800 miles, and not a single problem of any kind. I love my TR6, but I'll take a TR8 on a road trip like that any day."
1980 Triumph TR8 owner's story
"I'm on the Vintage Triumph Register national board of directors and I love all Triumphs. I own six of them now, including four TR8s. I think that one guy in the club has even more of them than I do. TR8s are fun cars, and undeservedly undervalued, although if they were expensive, I wouldn't have been able to acquire any of them.
"My wife, Caroline, has a TR8, too. Although other Triumphs have higher sale value, the TR8 has a very enthusiastic following. When my wife and I moved from King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, to North Carolina, I kept up my membership in the Delaware Valley Triumph Club. That's how I found this one, and I'm very glad that I did."
-Jack McGahey
What to pay
1980 Triumph TR8
Low: $10,000
Average: $14,000
High: $18,000
Club SceneVintage Triumph Register
P.O. Box 655
Howell, Michigan 48844-0655www.vtr.org
Dues: $30/year; Membership: 2,800
Triumph Wedge Owners Association
1591 Peoples Creek Road
Advance, North Carolina 27006www.triumphwedgeowners.org
Dues: $15/year; Membership: 300
1980 Triumph TR8 specificationsENGINE
Type: OHV V-8, cast-aluminum block and cylinder heads, cast-iron crankshaft
Displacement: 3,528 cubic centimeters (215.29 cubic inches)
Bore x stroke: 88.9mm x 71.12mm
Compression ratio: 8.1:1
Horsepower @ RPM: 135 @ 5,000
Torque @ RPM: 174-lbs.ft. @ 3,000
Valvetrain: Self-adjusting hydraulic valve lifters
Main bearings: 5
Fuel system: Dual side-by-side Zenith-Stromberg 175 CD sidedraft carburetors with automatic choke
Electrical system: 12-volt, Mallory dual-point distributor, Delco alternator
Exhaust system: Dual, twin catalytic converters
TRANSMISSION
Type: Jaguar Rover Triumph five-speed manual, single-plate dry clutch
Ratios: 1st 3.321:1
2nd: 2.087:1
3rd: 1.396:1
4th: 1.000:1
5th: 0.833:1
Reverse: 3.428:1
DIFFERENTIAL
Type: Hypoid, semi-floating
Ratio: 3.08:1
STEERING
Type: Adwest rack and pinion, General Motors Saginaw power assist
Turns, lock-to-lock: 2.8
Turning circle: 31.6 feet
BRAKES
Type: Lockheed four-wheel hydraulic, dual master cylinder, split circuit
Front: 9.75-inch solid discs, two-piston calipers
Rear: 9-inch expanding drums
CHASSIS & BODY
Type: Two-seat, two-door roadster Structure Unitized steel body with front subframe
Layout: Front engine, rear-wheel drive
SUSPENSION
Front: MacPherson struts, coaxial coil springs, anti-roll bar, KYB shocks
Rear: Upper and lower trailing arms, coil springs, Koni Classic shocks
WEIGHTS & MEASURES
Wheelbase: 85.5 inches
Overall length: 165.4 inches
Overall width: 66.2 inches
Overall height: 49.5 inches
Front track: 55.5 inches
Rear track: 55.3 inches
Curb weight: 2,662 pounds
WHEELS & TIRES
Wheels: Triumph cast aluminum alloy
Front/rear: 13 x 5.5 inches
Tires: Sumitoma HTR200
Front/rear: 205/60-HR13
CAPACITIES
Crankcase: 10.8 pints
Cooling system: 23 pints
Fuel tank: 14.6 gallons (U.S.)
Transmission: 3.3 pints
CALCULATED DATA
Hp per cc: .038
Weight per hp: 19.7 pounds
Weight per cc: 0.75 pounds
PERFORMANCE
0-60 MPH: 8.1 seconds
¼ mile: 16.2 seconds @ 87 MPH
Top speed: 117 MPH
PRICE
Base price: $12,325

This article originally appeared in the October, 2009 issue of Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car.